Bren Herrera

A perfect marriage of two of the very things that represent my love of food and culture: espresso and flan. It doesn’t get much better than this. The toasty almonds add great texture and the espresso will subtly keep you energized.

I’m excited for you to try this robust shredded beef dish, which literally translates to “old clothes” or “old, shredded clothes.” Pressure cooking a 1 1/2-pound (680-g) flank steak makes shredding this lean meat really easy. The red wine makes the sauce very round but I’ve also used white cooking wine, defying classical pairing trends, and it works just as lovely. That’s the beauty of making food your own. There’s nothing else like this classic Cuban recipe. President Obama enjoyed this very dish during his historical visit to Havana in spring 2016. We traditionally eat this rice with black bean rice (Moros y Cristianos), but the sauce is also lovely over vegetables, or any rice.

I used to write a food column for Dean & DeLuca where my job was to play around with a lot of their newest and trendiest ingredients and then develop recipes with the bounty. Of all the recipes I created, this is one of my favorites. The ancho chile powder adds a remarkable smokiness, while the cilantro beautifully brightens it up. Choose the best-quality short ribs you can find. It makes a nice difference in flavor and fat content.